Guinea-Bissau and IFAD partner to build farmers’ resilience to climate change
Rome, 04 March 2020
– The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) today
announced support for a new project in Guinea-Bissau to reduce poverty,
increase productivity and incomes, improve food and nutrition security
and build the resilience of at least 287,000 small-scale farmers in the
face of climate change.
Guinea-Bissau
is one of the world’s least developed countries. Its poverty rate is
very...
high, particularly in rural areas where up to 80 per cent of people
live in extreme poverty, mostly working in agriculture. They are at
particular risk as rising temperatures and sea levels and climate
disturbances are affecting agricultural production.
To
help the country to address these issues, the financing agreement for
the Agricultural Diversification, Integrated Markets, Nutrition and
Climate Resilience Project (REDE) was signed by correspondence by
Gilbert F. Houngbo, President of IFAD, and Geraldo João Martins, Minister of Finance of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.
This
US$65.7 million project will promote crop diversification to reduce the
country’s dependence on a single crop production - rice or cashew. As
the project areas have an arid Sahelian climate, climate change
mitigation and adaption measures will be introduced, particularly by
reducing brush fires and forest clearing, better lowland water
management, by increasing organic content of cultivated soils and
protecting and generating forests on plateau land.
“IFAD
is committed to work with the Government of Guinea-Bissau for inclusive
rural transformation of the country where the persons with disabilities
and returned migrants are not problems for their communities but are
part of the solution,” said Gianluca Capaldo, IFAD Country Director for
Guinea-Bissau. “REDE will work to ensure that no one is left behind”.
The
project will promote the economic inclusion of small-scale farmers in
adding value to agricultural production through processing. Rural
infrastructure will be put in place to support market-oriented
production, and to enable efficient delivery of surplus production from
small farms to markets, allowing farmers to sell more in national and
sub-regional markets and improve their livelihoods.
REDE
will build the capacity of small-scale farmers - not only in
production, but also in storing and processing perishable products. It
will promote literacy activities for women and vocational training for
young people.
The
project funding includes an $11.8 million loan and $4.3 million grant
from IFAD through its Special Programme for Countries with Fragile
Situations. In addition, the Government of Guinea-Bissau is providing
$7.6 million, with a further $4.9 million contributed by beneficiaries
themselves and significant cofinancing from other development partners.
REDE
will be implemented in four regions – Bafatà, Cacheu, Gabú and Oio and
will develop 14,000 ha of watersheds and 3,500 ha of lowland for
cultivation. In addition, 175 kilometres of roads, 3 existing
semi-wholesale markets, 5 weekly markets and 2 collection centres will
be rehabilitated. It will target women and young people, including
persons with disabilities, and migrants who have returned to the
country.
Since
1983, IFAD has invested more than $45.3 million in five rural
development programmes and projects in Guinea-Bissau worth a total of
almost $115.4 million. These interventions have directly benefited
almost 182,000 rural families.
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